How Sonic and the Black Knight Could've Gone
by Avatar Emerald
Summary: Exploring an alternate story of Sonic and the Black Knight, Sonic is summoned to the world of King Arthur to defeat the Black Knight and save Camelot. With the help of the Knights of the Round Table, can Sonic find the knight within and wield the Sacred Sword, Caliburn?
1. Chapter 1: Summoned

**Summoned**

A dark cloud covered the sun, as if to represent the rising threat that was coming. In the plains far from the castle, two figures were fleeing for their lives.

One was a young girl in a purple robe carrying a staff with a large green crystal orb on the top. Her long braided violet colored hair fell out of her hood and swung as she ran.

Gliding beside her was a white hedgehog. His silvery armor gleamed in the as the last of the sun vanished behind the cloud. His visor covered his eyes, but two cyan glows could just barely be seen. He carried in his right hand a large sword that looked like an ornate dagger.

"Merlina, he's above us!" The hedgehog urgently turned back and saw the Black Knight on his Black Stallion in the sky.

The dark warrior drew his sword and swiped it through the air. A black trail followed it and immediately monsters of the Underworld were unleashed. They landed on the earth and stopped the two runaways in their path.

The Silver Knight sprung from his place and immediately slashed through his enemies.

"Galahad!" Merlina shouted as she sent out a magic wave to the monsters behind him.

The magic attack struck a row of the Underworld's minions and they disappeared in puffs of smoke. With the defeat of its army, the black streak in the sky sent out more monsters.

Galahad flew up to the sky and slashed at the next group raining down. He managed to defeat the small flying enemies before they reached the ground, but Merlina still had to deal with the larger ones that reached her level.

"**Element: Earth!"** She raised her staff and commanded a swirling storm of dirt and stone to wipe out the monster's before her.

However, the onslaught of the Underworld army was just growing. There seemed to be no end.

The two runaways became even more concerned when the Black Knight himself landed and charged at them. Galahad shot down towards him and slashed, his sword gleaming slightly cyan. The Black Knight lifted his sword and blocked the horizontal slice. In a sword lock, the Black Knight growled in a low voice.

"You'll never defeat me, Galahad. You shall take my secret to your grave!"

The Black Knight flung the Silver Knight away, who landed on his feet and slide back. The Black Knight began charge as the monsters of the Underworld closed in on the weary fighters.

Galahad slammed his hand into the ground and created a large barrier on the ground; all inside except for Merlina were all frozen.

"Merlina!" Galahad strained. "Hurry, I can't hold this much longer!"

Merlina summoned her transportation magic. In a tornado of earth, the two disappeared.

Frustrated, the Black Knight slashed his enormous sword and the monsters of the Underworld disappeared in small explosions of black mist. He then rode up to the cliff where three knights stood. One was a red echidna, one was a black hedgehog, and one was a violet cat. When he stopped in front of them, they immediately got down on one knee.

"I shall give chase," the dark knight stated, "Spread out and go after them. Slay them on sight,"

Hesitantly, they all nodded.

The Black Knight quickly rode off in pursuit of the fugitives.

The cat stood up and turned to her companions.

"Let's go,"

"Must we?" The echidna questioned, "Galahad is one of the Knights of the Round Table. And Merlina's the royal wizard."

"The King's orders are absolute, Gawain," the black hedgehog replied tersely.

"Yes, but Lancelot…"

"Without loyalty to the king we are nothing," the cat forcefully cut off Gawain, who looked sharply at her.

Lancelot nodded then silently walked off.

"Are you sure Percival?" Gawain asked. "Galahad is also your closest companion."

Percival said nothing; she didn't even look at her comrade. Not wanting to press the matter any further, Gawain simply turned away and headed out on his mission.

"Still, the king has changed," Percival silently confessed, "But Galahad, how could you betray us?"

Without another word, Percival set out in her search.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

On the edge of the lake covered with mist, the two runaways appeared from a tornado of earth, collapsing to the ground with exhaustion.

Galahad's head swam for a moment as he slowly rose himself to his knees. After exerting that much mind energy so suddenly, it wasn't so surprising that he felt like there was a weight inside his skull. Eventually, the dizziness subsided and he stood up.

"Merlina," Galahad looked over at the young Wizard, "are you alright?"

"Yes," Merlina slowly got to her feet, using her staff to help support her, "but Galahad, what are we going to do about the Black Knight? And our King?"

From the behind them a voice gently answered,

"You must summon another knight."

The Wizard and Knight turned and saw before them Nimue, the Lady of the Lake. The pink hedgehog wore an elegant light blue dress and walked with a graceful stride toward the two weary outcasts. When they saw her, the two got down on one knee and bowed their heads.

"Lady Nimue," the Knight respectfully said.

"Sir Galahad, Merlina, I am aware of what has happened to King Arthur," the Lady of the Lake said in a solemn voice. "You both fought bravely."

"It wasn't enough," Merlina frowned as tears formed in her eyes, "My grandfather entrusted me to protect the king, and I failed."

"No," Nimue reassuringly placed a hand on the young girl's shoulder, "You still have a chance to turn the tides. You must summon another who can wield the sword of Caliburn."

"Caliburn," Galahad repeated, "King Arthur's first sword."

"Yes," the Lady of the Lake nodded.

Upon hearing this, Merlina immediately got up again, raised her staff, and stabbed it into the ground. Instantly, a summoning circle emanated from it and blue mist began to swirl around the wizard as she began to chant,

"Ifaras zaras yezaras…Ifaris zaris yezarik! O brave knight, swift as the wind, heed my call!"

The light from the circle shot up into the sky and a barrier parted the clouds. Only sunlight didn't shine through. Instead, a small blue figure fell out of the white hole.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sonic the Hedgehog didn't know what was happening. First, he was just sitting in a chair at his house waiting for Amy to come so they could go on a "date" due to his loss at a coin toss, and then suddenly, he was randomly falling out of the sky. He screamed and flailed his arms wildly as the ground rush to meet him. Before he had time to brace himself for the impending pain, the hedgehog face-planted straight into the ground. The taste of dirt and grass filled his mouth and he immediately got up, spitting out the contents.

"Ugh, gross!"

The blue hedgehog looked up and saw he his surroundings. On his left was a misty lake and on his right was a seemingly dense forest.

"What the? Where am I?"

From behind, Sonic heard a cluster of footsteps running in his direction. He turned sharply around and saw two figures that looked like friends of his and a total stranger.

"Wha…Amy? Silver?" the confused hedgehog raised an eyebrow, "What are guys doing here?"

Galahad stopped when he heard what Sonic had said.

"_How does he know I'm the Silver Knight?"_ He thought.

"Being from a distant world," Merlina knelt down to Sonic as she reached and took off her hood, "Please forgive my erupt summons."

Sonic just stared at the crowd in utter perplexity. Why were Silver and Amy acting so different? Amy would have run up and start hugging him to death by now and Silver would have said something like "the future is in danger". But they were just standing there looking serious, which was kind of creeping the blue hedgehog out a little.

"Guys, what's going on?" He suspiciously asked as he got to his feet, "And Silver, what's with the weird get-up?"

"Silver?" Galahad lifted up his visor to reveal golden eyes and a slightly baffled face, "I am Sir Galahad, Knight of the Round Table."

"Galahad?" Sonic rose an eyebrow in confusion. "Wait, did you say you were a Knight of the Round Table?!"

Galahad slowly nodded.

"Wait," Sonic mumbled as he began to connect the dots, "then that means…"

"This is the land ruled by King Arthur," Nimue answered.

"But…what are you doing here, Amy?" Sonic asked the Lady of the Lake.

"Amy?" Merlina questioned, "This is the Nimue, the Lady of the Lake."

The pink hedgehog gracefully curtsied as the young wizard introduced her.

"Oh," Sonic then remembered his previous adventure in another storybook.

"_That's right," _he thought, _"no one is who I think they are here,"_

"So," he cleared his throat and shrugged, "do you any of you care to tell my I'm here?"

"Come with me and I'll explain everything," Nimue gently gestured as she escorted him and the other two through the fog. The group disappeared into the mist just before Lancelot appeared from the woods. The Knight stared out over the lake, only seeing the water ripple as the wind gently blew across.

"Galahad," he said solemnly, "Why? Why would you betray us?"


	2. Chapter 2: Attacked

**Attacked**

_Earlier…_

_At the head of the Round Table along the outer circle, King Arthur sat as the Royal Wizard escorted the Silver Knight into the room._

"_Sire," Merlina bowed, "Sir Galahad is here."_

"_The other Knights are on the way," the hedgehog explained, "They'll be here shortly."_

"_Very good," King Arthur stood up and motioned for Galahad to take his seat, "in the meantime, I'd like to discuss the matter at hand."_

_Galahad respectfully bowed and took his seat opposite of the King with Merlina standing beside him._

"_Sir Galahad, I assume you are aware of the danger that has begun to threaten the Kingdom," the King said in a strong voice._

"_Yes, sire," Galahad lifted his visor, "just last night more monsters of the Underworld attack a nearby village. Gawain and Lancelot have been tracking their movements. From what they've gathered, the Underworld army seems to be heading in a straight line to Castle Camelot."_

"_I see," Arthur pensively rubbed his chin, "fear that this disturbance may result in the destruction of our world."_

"_If I may be so bold as to make a suggestion, your majesty," Merlina hesitantly raised her hand, "if the monsters are heading toward the Castle, then it would be wise for you to leave here as soon as possible."_

"_I appreciate your concern, Merlina," the King stood up, "but the safety of my citizens comes first. That is why I called you and the Knights here, Galahad. I want you all to patrol the kingdom."_

"_Yes, your majesty," Galahad said as he bowed his head, "But what about you. As Knights of the Round Table, your safety is our first and foremost priority."_

"_I understand," Arthur acknowledge the Silver Knight's concern "That is why I need Merlina to remain here and..."_

_Before the King could finish his sentence, there was an ominous laughter that echoed through the room._

"_Oh, King Arthur," it mockingly chuckled, "still as pathetic as ever. How you ever manage to become King is still a mystery to me."_

_Galahad leapt from his seat and drew his sword._

"_How dare you insult the king!" He shouted._

"_Sir Galahad," the voice continued in the same mocking tone, "Loyal as ever I see. That Sacred Sword of yours does suit you. However, even you can't stand up to my power."_

_Suddenly, a black mist appeared in the inner part of the Round Table and began to take shape. Soon it became a figure of a black knight. It's pale white eyes scowled at the witnesses._

"_Who are you?" King Arthur warily stepped back and gripped the pommel of his sword._

"_I am the commander of the Underworld. You can call me "the Black Knight"!"_

_Before Galahad and Merlina knew what was happening, the stranger lunged toward King Arthur. The King drew Excalibur from its sheath and blocked the Black Knight's blow. Galahad immediately sprang from his place and slashed at the attacker. To his surprise and horror, his sword just cut through the mist._

"_What!?"_

"_Your efforts are futile," the Black Knight scoffed._

_Turning his attention to the Silver Knight, the assailant pushed Arthur to the ground and slashed at Galahad. The hedgehog levitated out of the way and attempted to attack again. The Black Knight conjured a black electric orb and threw it at Galahad. It hit Galahad and flung him back against the wall, causing him to let go of his sword. He fell to the ground and curved in pain._

"_Enough!" Merlina yelled, "__**Element: Fire!**__"_

_Merlina summoned a fireball from the orb on her staff and swung it at the Black Knight. The flaming orb hit its target. The Knight fell back at the shot._

"_Impressive," he coughed, "you really are Merlin's granddaughter. However, even you can't stop my plans!"_

_The attacker swung his sword and sent a black wave at Merlina. The wizard tried to hold her ground. While she managed to put a barrier shield up in time, the attack was more powerful than anything she had ever blocked before. When it dissipated, she gripped her staff and fell to her knees, winded from the amount energy she had to suddenly put into her defense._

"_Merlina!" Galahad painfully groaned._

_King Arthur vaulted over the Table's outer circle and into its center, gripped Excalibur with both hands and faced the Black Knight._

"_State your business, intruder!" He demanded._

"_Simple," the Black Knight said wickedly, "I want the scabbard of Excalibur."_

_He pointed to the scabbard around Arthur's waist. Arthur stepped back and turned slightly to the side, trying to keep the scabbard out of reach._

"_You can't have it!" Galahad shouted as he got up, grabbed his weapon with his mind energy, and leapt into the center of the table, pointing his sword at the Black Knight._

"_I wasn't talking to you," the attacker snapped at the Silver Knight._

"_Galahad, stand down!" King Arthur ordered._

_Galahad hesitated, but eventually obeyed and lowered his sword._

"_Why do you want the scabbard?" the King asked, still keeping Excalibur raised._

_The Black Knight said nothing. Instead, he unexpectedly lunged at Arthur, knocking him down. In the process, grabbed the scabbard and ripped it off its belt. Arthur fell back and knocked into the inner circle of the table._

"_King Arthur!" Galahad yelled as he leapt at the Black Knight._

_As Galahad drew closer, the scabbard began to glow. The Silver Knight attempted to strike, but was repelled back by a barrier. Galahad flew back into Merlina just as she entered the inner circle. She gasped in pain as she was slammed into the table and both fell to the stone floor._

"_This scabbard," The Black Knight raised his prize triumphantly, "while in the right hands can make one immortal! With this, I'll be able to carry out my plans!"_

_The Black Knight turned to King Arthur, raised his hand, and a black opening appeared below the King._

"_No!" Merlina cried. _

_She shoved Galahad off of her and raced toward her king. But she arrived too late. She reached to grab the Arthur's hand, but he slipped out of her grasp and fell into the oblivion._

"_NO!"_

_Merlina looked up with a scowl, but her face immediately changed to surprised horror. The Black Knight no longer looked like a dark ghost, but like King Arthur himself._

"_But…how!" Galahad staggered as he witnessed the transformation. Just a blink of an eye, and an evil illusion of their king stood before them._

"_Oh, a sad fate for the King," the voice of King Arthur answered from the imposter. "Trapped in the Underworld for eternity."_

"_BRING HIM BACK THIS INSTANT!" Galahad bellowed in rage._

_The Silver Knight flew high into the air and shot back down at the imposter with tremendous force. The two got caught in a sword lock, creating small sparks as Galahad focused his mind energy into his sword. Merlina rose to her feet and summoned another spell!_

"_**Element: Quintessence!**__"_

_A stream of lightning shot from the ball on her staff and hit the Black Knight. At that moment, the door opened and three Knights walked in: Lancelot, Gawain, and Percival._

"_Galahad?!" Lancelot stared in shock at the sight of what he saw._

"_Lancelot!" Galahad managed to say before the Black Knight shoved him away and broke Merlina's spell. Galahad flew out of the table, landed on his feet, and slid back a ways. Merlina staggered back against until she hit the inner circle of the table. She gripped the woodwork to steady herself._

"_Seize them," the imposter ordered, "They have betrayed the kingdom!"_

_There was a moment of hesitation as the three tried to process what was happening. Galahad and Merlina attacking the King? That just didn't seem right. It couldn't be true! But they all saw it!_

"_Obey your king and seize the traitors!" The Black Knight bellowed._

_Almost immediately, Lancelot and Gawain rushed towards Galahad while Percival went for Merlina!_

_Galahad looked at the two it terror and back up against the wall._

"_No! Lancelot! Gawain! It's not what you think!" He pleaded, not wanting to fight his comrades._

"_You were fighting our King!" Gawain barked gruffly._

"_No, he's not…!"_

_Galahad ducked as Lancelot threw a red bolt of energy at him. The Ultimate Knight drew his sword and slashed at Galahad. Galahad lifted his own sword and blocked it._

"_Lancelot, stop!"_

_But the black hedgehog didn't seem to be listening. Confusion and anger bumped through him as he threw his attacks at his comrade. Why? Why did he turn on the King?_

"_Lancelot, please stop!" Galahad desperately pleaded. "You're making a mistake!"_

_Galahad blocked and evaded Lancelot's assaults with everything he had. He didn't want to hurt his comrade, but he couldn't let himself get injured either. Quickly glancing over, he saw Percival fighting Merlina. Though the wizard was holding her own, she was starting to become weary._

_The Silver Knight finally threw a blast of cyan energy at Lancelot, knocking him into Gawain, and rushed over to Merlina. Percival was about to strike again when Galahad knocked her aside with another blast of energy._

"_I'm sorry, comrades," he whispered bitterly as he did._

_Galahad then picked Merlina up and flew out of the door as quickly as he could._

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"…The false king then pursued us," Merlina explained before sipping her tea again, "we managed to escape, but now we are seen as traitors."

"So you're saying that this Black Knight guy is pretending to be King Arthur?" Sonic asked once she was done.

Merlina solemnly nodded.

"Heh, and I thought Shadow was a real faker," Sonic grinned jokingly to himself.

"Knave, this is serious!" Galahad snapped when he heard the comment.

"Galahad, calm down," Nimue gently gestured, "I know you're discouraged and upset, but you can't let your temper control you."

"My apologies, Nimue," the white hedgehog dismally nodded.

Sonic turned to Galahad when he called him "knave". Mostly because he found it odd to hear something like that coming out of someone he knew to not be very poetic, but rather straightforward and, at times, somewhat immature. It was particularly odd to see Amy talking so calm and collected. The thing Sonic had to do cope with it was to remind himself that these people weren't the friends he knew back home.

"So," he casually rubbed his finger underneath his nose, "usurped king, underworld invasion, is there a plan to defeat him?"

"Yes," Nimue replied, "the only way to defeat the Black Knight is to blunt the power he has possessed on the scabbard. To do so, you must unite the Knights of the Round Table. They each wield a Sacred Sword like the one Galahad himself possesses. The Swords, when combined together, hold the equal power of that of Excalibur: the greatest of all Sacred Swords."

"And with the Sacred Swords together," Merlina said, "we should be able to dispel the Black Knight's curse."

"Precisely," Nimue concluded.

"However," Galahad interrupted, "we need one more Sacred Sword to make it complete: Caliburn."

"Caliburn?" Sonic asked.

"It was the sword that proved Arthur was ready to be king," Merlina explained.

"Oh, you mean 'The Sword in the Stone'," Sonic grinned when he mad the connection.

"Yes," Merlina said, "you know this story?"

"Yeah, it's actually a popular story back where I come from," Sonic casually stretched as he leaned back in his seat.

"I see," Nimue answered quietly.

"And I take it the sword is where I come in," Sonic said with a blasé tone.

"If you mean that's why you were summoned, then yes," Galahad grumbled, irritated with this hedgehog's unconcerned attitude.

"Beyond this lake is where Caliburn lies," Nimue stood up and pointed eastward. "Galahad, you will need to escort Sonic to the location."

"Yes, my lady," Galahad stood up and bowed with respect.

"Merlina," the Lady of the Lake continued as she turned to the wizard, "I need your help in keeping the powers of the Underworld at bay. We also need to figure out a way to summon King Arthur back."

"Of course," the wizard replied, determined to mend the mistake she made before.

"Well," Sonic jumped to his feet, "since I'm stuck here, I might as well help you guys out. Besides, a story with magic and swords sounds like an exciting adventure."

"This is not a game, knave!" Galahad scolded as he snapped his head in Sonic's direction. "If we don't hurry then this kingdom will fall and our King will be lost to the Underworld forever! So either you take this seriously or not come along at all!"

"Okay, okay, I get the point," Sonic sharply answered, "Now stop calling me knave! My name's Sonic, Sonic the Hedgehog!"

"Very well," Galahad said tersely, "Let's just get going, we have no time to lose."

Immediately, the two hedgehogs emerged from the mist and set out toward the woods. Sonic ran fast on foot while Galahad kept up by gliding beside him.

What neither of them saw was that Lancelot emerged from the shadows of the trees and watch them race off.

The Ultimate Knight clenched his fists for a moment, and then set out in pursuit of his former comrade, secretly dreading the mission that he was assigned to carry out.


	3. Chapter 3: Lancelot vs Galahad

**Lancelot vs. Galahad**

After making a good distance, Sonic and Galahad steadied their pace and began to walk for a few miles. When they walked among a group of apple trees, Galahad used his mind energy to pull two juicy red apples off the branches. Once he caught them, he tossed one over his shoulder to Sonic, who caught it with one hand.

"We'll have to keep up or strength," Galahad began to munch on the small snack, "It's only a few more miles, but we may run into some trouble before we reach it."

"Relax, dude," Sonic said with a large chunk of apple in his mouth, "we're the only ones around here."

As they continued to walk, Galahad remained on guard, looking around the forest and keeping his ears open for any sound that was out of the ordinary. Which was not an easy task since his irritation for Sonic was constantly rising.

"So Silv…I mean, Galahad, these knights of the Underworld sound pretty nasty," the blue hedgehog casually stated.

"Yes," Galahad replied, only paying half attention to what Sonic was saying.

"Well, I'll be honest it actually sounds kinda cool," Sonic grinned as he tossed away the core of his apple, "it's like a Halloween all year round,"

That did it!

Galahad suddenly whipped around, sword drawn, and pointed it directly at Sonic. Sonic, surprised at the sudden action, fell backwards and nervously stared at the shining blade aimed at his face, slightly backing away from its point.

Under his visor, the Silver Knight's eyes were blazing in fury.

"Listen, Sonic, and listen well," Galahad growled angrily, "I told you before, THIS IS NOT A GAME! I don't know what you're supposed to be in your world, but I can clearly see you are no knight! How Merlina ever managed to summon someone like you is beyond me!"

Sonic scowled at Galahad as the words he spoke stung his pride.

"Do my words hurt?" The white hedgehog grunted. "Good, let them!"

Galahad pulled his sword away and turned back to the trail they were following. Sonic got up, angered by the knight's accusations.

"But you are here, so I might as well help you get to Caliburn," Galahad replied in low voice, "Just remember, I'm doing this because I promised Nimue, not for you."

"What makes you think I'm not good enough to be a knight?!" Sonic snapped. "I'll have you know I've defeated many enemies before!"

Galahad turned his head around slightly as Sonic continued.

"You want me to prove it to you?" The blue hedgehog continued as he clenched his fists. "Well fine, I'll show you what I can do right now!"

Galahad mischievously grinned.

"Very well," he said as he picked up a large branch lying on the ground and broke it in half. He threw one half to Sonic, who caught it with one hand.

"If you're as skilled as you say, then show me in a knight's dual."

Sonic smirked almost malevolently and lunged toward Galahad. If he could handle the power of the Seven Chaos Emeralds, then swinging a stick should be easy.

Well, swinging the stick was easy enough; it was just landing blows on his opponent that was the challenge. Each time Sonic swung, Galahad would either dodge it or block it with his own stick.

Sonic swung vertically, Galahad simply sidestepped out of the way. Sonic jabbed forward; Galahad just blocked it with a swing of the stick. Finally, Sonic became frustrated and began to attack with wild an unpredictable moves. Galahad continued to dodge and evade; only now finding he had to react quicker than ever.

"_He's quick, no doubt about that,"_ The Silver Knight thought to himself, "_but its time to end this."_

With a spin and a swing, Galahad ducked under Sonic's horizontal slice and knocked the stick out of his hand. The blue hedgehog stumbled back and gripped his hand in pain.

"Okay," he grimaced, "I'll admit you're good."

Galahad lowered his stick and lifted his visor.

"I wasn't using my full strength," Galahad stated, "If I was you wouldn't be standing right now."

"And what would your full power be?" Sonic sneered.

Galahad said nothing but stared at Sonic while stretching a hand toward him. The next thing Sonic knew, he was frozen in a cyan energy. He knew this power, it was exactly like the energy of a friend of his from the future: Silver the Hedgehog.

"I can stun my enemies and manipulate objects around me with my mind," Galahad explained. "I can also use it to fly."

"_Man, he's even got Silver's telekinesis."_ Sonic thought.

Galahad released his hold on the blue hedgehog.

"Just remember it won't be me you're fighting next time," the Silver Knight adjusted the gantlet on his wrist, "and it certainly won't be with wooden sticks."

Sonic was about to make a comeback remark when Galahad suddenly lunged at him. He tackled the blue hedgehog to the ground just as a red bolt of energy swept overhead. From high up in the trees, a voice sternly stated,

"I've found you, traitor and apprentice knight, enemies of my king."

"Oh no," Galahad whispered.

A black figure leapt down from the trees. A black hedgehog with red streaks in his quills in grayish black armor with his visor down and a large sword in his right hand stood before them.

"What the…Shadow?" Sonic said out loud.

"I am Lancelot," the black hedgehog replied as he looked at the apprentice, "Knight of the Round Table. The King has ordered me to strike down any who betray or threaten him."

"Lancelot, please," Galahad pleaded as he got to his feet, "I would never betray the King or the other Knights. You have been deceived…"

"Silence, Galahad!" Lancelot scolded as he raised his sword and pointed it directly at the Silver Knight.

"However," he lowered his voice, "since I must follow the code of chivalry, I challenge you to a duel!"

Galahad hesitated for a moment, but the gripped his sword tight and raised it, mirroring Lancelot's action.

"You know the rules, Lancelot," he stated, "If I win, you will listen to my story. As for joining us, I will let you decide."

"Very well," Lancelot responded, "and if I win, you're life is forfeit."

As Lancelot said the last part, there was a distinct drop in his voice to almost desolate.

"Silver…er…Galahad, you're not seriously agreeing to that!" Sonic quickly got to his feet as the situation got more intense.

Galahad didn't answer, he simply responded by lowering his visor.

"You're fight is with me," Galahad said to the Ultimate Knight, "but leave Sonic out of this fight."

Lancelot nodded.

"Galahad, let me help!" Sonic forcefully demanded.

"No Sonic," the Silver Knight answered, "As a Knight of the Round Table I must honor the code of chivalry and fight Lancelot, one-on-one."

"Enough of this idle talk," Lancelot commanded. "Prepare yourself, Sir Galahad!"

Lancelot lunged forward. Galahad just barely managed to block the frontal attack with his sword as he shoved Sonic out of the way, knocking him to the ground. He then pushed Lancelot away, who stumbled back for a few feet before looking up with a threatening glare.

Sonic looked up in time to see Lancelot raised his left fist as it began to glow with red energy. As he swung, several bolts of red energy headed straight for Galahad. The Silver Knight reacted by using his mind energy. With a spin, he effortlessly redirected their path back at Lancelot.

The black hedgehog black flipped out of the way as they hit the ground with a tremendous force, leaving small craters in the earth.

"You always were a worthy opponent," Lancelot grunted as he landed to his feet, "however, I can't let your treason go unpunished!"

The two lunged toward each other again, this time their swords clashed and locked. Now starring at each other face-to-face, Galahad could see the full rage in the Ultimate Knight's eyes, even under his visor.

"Why do you say I betrayed you?!" Galahad shouted. "When I promised King Arthur and the Knights that I would be faithful I meant it! Why do you believe I would go back on my word?!"

Lancelot didn't answer. Instead, his hand started to glow red again.

"Silver, watch out!" Sonic urgently shouted, not realizing he got the name wrong again.

Galahad became confused, which allowed Lancelot to swing his fist and punch the Silver Knight in the stomach, sending a shock of red energy as he did.

Galahad cried out in agony and clumsily stumbled. He painfully gripped his abdomen and sank to his knees, using his sword to steady himself.

Sonic watched in terror and frustration. Every single instinct in his body was yelling at him to get in there and help. The agonizing thing was that he knew he couldn't. What made it so terrifying was that he was watching two people who resembled his friends' fight each other, doubtlessly to the death. Not to mention Lancelot showed that he holds the same power as his friend, Shadow the Hedgehog.

To make matters worse, Galahad seemed to be outmatched.

Sonic became fidgety as he resisted the urge to spin-dash into Lancelot as the Ultimate Knight marched over to the fallen Galahad, sword ready to strike down his opponent.

"Do you surrender?" Lancelot gruffly stated as he raised his sword to Galahad's head.

Galahad responded by slamming his hand onto the ground. Instantly, a bright cyan circle with ornate patterns emerged from where his hand struck. Lancelot levitated off the ground and grimaced in pain as Galahad got a grip on him.

"You said I was a worthy opponent," he panted, "what you failed to mention was that I hold the same power as you!"

Galahad then swung his left arm, throwing the Ultimate Knight up against a tree. Lancelot gasped for air as he hit the trunk and his visor flew up, revealing his face. He lost his grip on his sword and then slid to the ground.

"It appears you taught me well," Galahad grimaced as he got to his feet, still gripping his stomach where Lancelot punched him.

Lancelot looked up with rage burning in his eyes. As he reached for his sword, a foot stomping onto the blade stopped him. He looked up and saw Sonic standing over him with an angry scowl.

"That's enough!" Sonic shouted.

"Sonic!" Galahad scolded.

"How dare you interfere, apprentice!" Lancelot bellowed at the blue hedgehog.

"What's your problem, dude!" Sonic sharply barked. "Galahad is no traitor! Can't you see that the guy you're taking orders from is an imposter of the true king?! If not, then you need your eyes check!"

Lancelot scowled harder as Sonic said those words.

"Galahad and Merlina were trying to stop the real King Arthur from being kidnapped when you burst in on them!" Sonic continued. "You just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time! Now instead of fighting us like a maniac you can join us and we can rescue the real King and defeat this imposter before it's too late!"

Lancelot looked at Sonic with a hard scowl. However, he could see in his face that this young apprentice was telling the truth.

Galahad was impressed by the way Sonic stopped the fight without leaping into the duel.

"_Maybe he is worthy to be a knight,"_ Galahad thought to himself as he rose an eyebrow.

Lancelot then turned to the Silver Knight. Galahad painfully walked up to him and held out his hand.

"Sonic speaks the truth," he said, "And to restore the King, we need your sword, Lancelot. Please, will you help us?"

Lancelot glared slightly at Galahad for a few moments before letting out a sigh.

"Fine," he took Galahad's hand. His comrade pulled Lancelot to his feet. The Ultimate Knight then turned toward Sonic.

"My sword if you would be so kind," he grunted.

Sonic stepped off the blade as Lancelot picked it up.

"So, what do we do?" He asked tersely.

"The Black Knight has taken Excalibur's scabbard and is using it to become immortal." Galahad explained, "We must untie the rest of the Knights and we must also retrieve Caliburn. Merlina summoned Sonic to become its wielder."

Lancelot turned to Sonic with a confused expression. He was supposed to be Caliburn's next wielder?

"He doesn't look like a knight," he stated unconcerned.

Sonic scowled and was about to snap at Lancelot when Galahad responded,

"Actually, he has potential. How he handled himself now was actually an admirable display."

Both turned to the Silver Knight with surprise.

"You know that's the first positive thing you've said about me," Sonic stated.

Galahad grinned, "I guess you just had to be presented with the right test."

"Anyway," Lancelot gruffly interrupted, "we should get going."

"Right, let's go!" Sonic was about to run off when Galahad grabbed his shoulder. He turned around and saw the Knight handing him a gauntlet with a gold bracelet with a red gem in the center.

"You're going to need this," He answered, "It marks your status as a knight. Rather, your training as a knight as of right now."

Sonic stared at it for a moment. He then slowly took it and slipped it onto his right hand.

"Thanks," the blue hedgehog slightly nodded.

Without another word, the trio set out to retrieve the Sacred Sword.


End file.
